Have you dine in a Chinese restaurant selling Dim Sum dishes? It is commonly seen in Hong Kong and China, or perhaps the restaurants located in ‘Chinatown’ of New York city.
There are small dishes of steamed food placed in small wooden basket. Food serves in table usually has a pot of Chinese tea and few small cups made of fine porcelain.
The Chinese starts their Dim Sum meal from late morning till mid afternoon, before a game of mahjong or chess which comes next as a past time for the elderly members. Elderly folks who has retired, housewives, or wealthy ‘TaiTai” love Dim Sum. It’s their Chinese lifestyle.
It’s part of the Chinese culture where people gather in a round dinning table to social; sharing and chatting bit and pieces of daily topics that comes to their mind. This social activity remains unchanged for many years.
In Chinese culture, enjoying good food is as equally important as talking and listening attentively to people within the table. All other smaller gestures can be considered trivial, such as using chopsticks to pick their food.
One little gesture that may have seemingly unnoticed is their fingers tapping on table top when guest being served with Chinese tea. If one tap as if it is hammering, then this manner is obviously rude. Not necessarily it has to exaggerate and create tapping sound, however more specifically showing little brisk movement in discreet manner.
Finger Tapping in Chinese Restaurant, Chinese Culture
As part of the table etiquette in modern China, this body language is an expression of saying “Thank you for pouring tea into my cup” to a restaurant waiter.
On the lighter side, the indirect meaning could be telling waiters to walk away soon after pouring the tea and do not eavesdrop our latest gossip of the day.
Olden days in Southern China, this subtle movement may symbolized great honor and respect to an elderly master who serve tea to younger people.
To any one brought up by Western culture might say “Thank you” is the simplest verbal expression in table manners. But not in the Chinese way of saying, especially when people is in the midst of an intense discussion on possibly the ‘juiciest‘ scuttlebutt in the estate.
Well, busy chatting and listening attentively could be a way to keep one’s mind on alertness.
So how does it make sense by using fingers to tap on table top, and how it relate to the Chinese culture?
There has been no substantial proof to explain this. Nevertheless, Wikipedia does provide some sensible reasoning which date back to the Qing Dynasty. Below sharing an excepts:
“This custom is said to have originated in the Qing Dynasty when Emperor Qian Long would travel in disguise through the empire. Servants were told not to reveal their master’s identity. One day in a restaurant, the emperor, after pouring himself a cup of tea, filled a servant’s cup as well. To that servant it was a huge honour to have the emperor pour him a cup of tea. Out of reflex he wanted to kneel and express his thanks. He could not kneel and kowtow to the emperor since that would reveal the emperor’s identity so he bent his fingers on the table to express his gratitude and respect to the emperor.
The bent fingers for knocking are technically supposed to be three to signify a bowing servant. One is the head and the other two are the arms.” ~ Source: Wikipedia, Chinese Tea Culture
With this explanation, you would never follow blindly with other Hong Kong’s elderly and friends to enjoy a sumptuous Dim Sum.
Tags: China, Chinese Culture
The art news came yesterday evening, broadcasting on television about a 4-Year-old girl who takes NYC art world by storm. And what has surprised me is not her art talent, but the sales that she received from 3 art paintings hanging at the Agora Gallery in Chelsea, New York. Artist named, Aelita Andre, an Australian toddler, has become famous overnight.
How much is her paintings received? Within a week, three buyers has already paid a ‘hefty’ sum of US$27,000. Naming it it contemporary abstracts, the paintings are some splatter work. With each art piece priced to about US$9,000. Frankly speaking, I don’t see the point of worth in her art valuation based on a few influence that are factual.
Firstly, both her parents are artists, whom has provided her a strong background and education to groom this toddler to be artistic. Secondly, she is only 4 years old. Expectation from most parents, with little girl of this tender age, will be hoping their child’s art work showcasing in an elementary school exhibition. But not for young artist, Aelita Andre, giving her solo show at the Agora Gallery in Chelsea, New York.
So what worth being paid for these 3 art paintings which, if you believe the hype, is the highest value in age versus art skill proportionality?
This is a totally absurd, as some may have thought. I’m not to criticizing on her artwork; I love art, and it isn’t dead, but its patrons are brain-dead. To add on to the art valuation received, it is no doubt more than enough to stock up 1 year of premium quality milk powder to nourished her creativity.
Unlike the Chinese, there is a proverb that goes ‘hit while the iron is hot’. Indeed, there are good at speculation, and it has proven in every art auction. Just look at recent Christie’s auction “Asian 20th Century & Contemporary Art (Evening Sale)” held in HongKong, less than 2 weeks ago. Most of the buyers and artists are from China.
The well-known Chinese contemporary artist, Zeng Fanzhi, with his featured paintings entitled “The Leopard“, has fetched a value of about US$4.7 million. And all proceeds will generously contribute to the non-profit organization The Nature Conservancy.
So as for her colorful paintings considered an artwork of child prodigy, with the help of speculation by the news media? Or maybe it turn out to have mutual benefits for both Agora Gallery in Chelsea and her future fame in the art industry? Has she paints like Picasso, or did Picasso paint like a 4-year-old?
source: NBC New York, 4-Year-Old Girl Takes NYC Art World By Storm